A Father's Realization
by supercat87
Summary: Vegeta realizes that there's more to life than obsessively trying to surpass his rival.


As the rough terrain became surrounded by a foggy layer of smoke, Cell emerged and pointed his index finger straight ahead and fired a thin, but deadly ray of ki.

Seconds later, he formed a malicious grin as he saw his beam pierce its way through his unsuspecting target.

Meanwhile, Vegeta froze up in horror as he saw that the poor soul who had been impaled was none other than Trunks, his own son. A million thoughts zoomed through the Saiyan prince's mind as he watched the life of his own flesh and blood slowly fade away.

"After all that we had gone through, this is how it ends…" he thought. Despite possessing the persona of a cold blooded killer, he still secretly cherished all of the great things that his son had opened him up to during the _two years_ they had spent together.

Burdened with turmoil, he slowly drifted away into a lively flashback.

 _As the brown wooden door opened, and white light shimmered through the crack, the prince's heart suddenly tensed with apprehension. Surely it wasn't the thought of having to train for two years straight that had him overwhelmed with such anxiety was it?_

 _As he took another step forward and walked past him, it all became clear. He was the one yet again, controlling his emotions as if they were his puppet. That look of confidence on his face, that expression of contentment that he resented so deeply. Just a glimpse of that low class face, was enough to promote the fear of failure, and cause trepidation._

 _However, everything was about to change in just two days; as the prince of Saiyans, he was going to reclaim his birthright and free himself of the emotional torment that he was constantly subjected to by an unworthy scum. With that goal in mind, he confidently stepped into the mysterious room that he knew so little about._

 _After the door shut behind him, he began exploring every aspect of the room from left to right, and front to back. It was quite a strange place indeed. Immediately past the entrance was a hallway that forked out into two separate rooms. There was a small living area with two beds and a bathroom in one room, and a kitchen and a small dining table in the other. Beyond all of that was nothing but sheer emptiness. There were no clear boundaries or any sign of a border established anywhere; all he saw was a bright empty space that almost looked like a blank sheet of white paper. The lodging area that he was standing in was like a tiny bubble that anchored itself in the middle of a blank empty space of absolutely nothing._

 _A bit shocked that such a place even existed, the prince wondered what he had even gotten himself into. "Could two years in this dump really be equivalent to days out there?"_

 _As continued to exam his surroundings, the only other person in the room with him suddenly spoke up._

 _"Well we better get started... Look, I totally understand if you prefer to be alone, but just know that I'm here if you need anything...dad," said Trunks with a look of uncertainty, as he tensed his body._

 _Irritated by his son's gesture of kindness, Vegeta harshly turned his head towards him in disgust._

 _"Hmph, I strongly advise that you keep your damn distance. It'll be in your best interest boy." he scolded as he ventured off into the emptiness of the white room and began prepping himself to train in isolation.  
_  
As his mind fell back into reality, he was suddenly consumed by indescribable confusion. Feeling himself descend deeper and deeper into a mad pit of chaos, something inside him snapped. An odd but familiar sensation began to consume him. It was almost exactly how he felt when _it first happened_ ; when he first _transformed_. The feeling of anguish, hopelessness, that internal cry out for help in desperation. It was happening all over again. This time, however, he was completely immobilized.

It was as if the ability to move itself had been disabled by all the shame that had finally caught up to him. The shame that was brought forth by _Kakarot_. The one who possessed the ability to outshine even his greatest accomplishments with his _undeserving talent._ Milestones that required blood, sweat, and tears to reach, casually swept aside by _his_ natural gift. He made him sick with resentment, and the very thought of him made his blood boil.

But was it really the humiliation that was driving him to the damn near brink of insanity? He really wasn't even sure anymore.

As his thoughts deepened, he was inundated with another flashback. As a matter of fact it was a notable day that he will always remember.

 _The prince stood around in the emptiness of the room and ignited his golden aura in anger._

 _"Damn you Kakarot!"_

 _As he amplified his aura of ki, the white room suddenly turned into a fiery inferno._

 _"Father!" Trunks yelled as he rushed towards his father._

 _He began to panic as he saw his father's body engulfed in flames. But as he drew closer, the flames instantly disappeared. Before he could even figure out what had happened, he was knocked down to the floor with a swift backhand to the face._

 _"What the hell did I tell you about keeping your damn distance boy?! Vegeta scolded furiously as he looked down at his son with an angry scowl._

 _After pausing and hesitating for a moment, Trunks finally summed up the courage to try and reason with his dad. If there was anyone that was going to free his father's soul, it was going to be him, and he was determined to do it before their time in the room was up._

 _"It doesn't have to be this way dad... You don't have to constantly live in torment. Let it go," Trunks advised, his face wearing many burdens._

 _Not quite sure what his son was babbling about, Vegeta glowered at him._

 _"Your resentment towards Goku… let it go dad. It's only…"_

 _"Shut your damn mouth! Don't you dare patronize me. Who the hell are you to snoop around in my affairs hm?" Vegeta aggressively retaliated with a grimace._

 _"This may not mean much to you, but in my eyes, there's not a warrior in this universe who wields the same degree of honor and dignity as you… and I'm proud to call you my father," countered Trunks with a look of sincerity that was burdened with deep sensations of pain._

As those words echoed on in his head, for the first time in years, the prince's unhealthy obsessions pertaining to his rival slowly diminished. They were instead replaced by the pain of true loss. His son, whom he had outwardly rejected this entire time, was now gone. The one who had shown him that it was okay to grieve over defeat, while giving him the strength to prevail over his own doubts was now a mere memory that lingered on.

Such a cold and hurtful sensation that he never knew his emotions were even capable of feeling was now eating him up alive. Losing the one person who saw past his personification as a cold blooded killer and who had genuinely cared for him was not only numbing, but excruciatingly painful at the same time.

"Could this sentimental rubbish that I'm feeling be the pain of loss...? Should I at least hold him one last time...? Is it too late to set things right?" he thought as he was caught in an indecisive dilemma.

With the same questions plaguing his mind, he knew he only had one option at that point. He had to kill the one responsible for his son's death.

After realizing just _how much_ his son meant to him, the prince regained his mobility and began screaming in despair. It was as if this uncontrollable cry of pain was his soul's way of involuntarily releasing the desolation that he'd been bottling up all these years. From being a pawn to that loathsome Freeza, to becoming a mere second to that scum Kakarot, and now finally this, the death of his beloved son. Someone whom he had secretly, yet genuinely learned to treasure.

As the golden aura around him intensified, the prince ascended to a level that he never knew was even physically possible to attain. His strength must have at least doubled. With currents of electricity sparkling all over him, he was awe-struck by the subtle but new appearance he had taken on.

He couldn't believe it, the time he and his son had spent together in that dreaded _Hyperbolic Time Chamber_ seemed to have _actually_ paid off. He had done it, he had actually surpassed _Kakarot_.

On top of that, after enduring _two years_ of pain, confusion, anger, and even tears, the prince had transitioned from a selfish warrior who only fought for his own pride to an honorable hero who was driven by the desire to avenge his son.

With his body flowing with unfathomable power, and his memories filled with the challenges he and his son had to overcome together in that _chamber_ , he prepared to obliterate the seemingly invincible biological android who took his son's life.

"This is for you.. my son.." the prince thought to himself as he charged at his opponent full force.


End file.
